It’s good to spend time thinking about how having faith or being a Christian affects our ideas and opinions. This doesn’t have to mean academic study, and certainly not discussions about angels on heads of pins. It doesn’t need to get in the way of action and activity. In fact at its best it’s likely to encourage more practical engagement with the world around us. TV, books, websites and magazines all inform us, as does our own experience, and the people we listen to and talk with. Reading the Bible is of course important.

It’s not uncommon to find those against Christianity being more knowledgeable about the Bible than those of us who claim it as a holy book. I have been telling some of the Old Testament stories in Crianlarich & Dalmally schools (along with Father Bill Fraser in Dalmally). I started off by telling the children that anyone who says the world would be better if we were to go back to living as they did in Bible times was wrong, and they could say the minister said so. That got a reaction! Jacob being tricked into marrying Leah, and then having his father in law say he can marry Rachel too. Moses running away after killing a man, later returning to lead the exodus from Egypt. No police or lawyers there. Good stories but not a recipe for behaviour. They can help us work out what’s important and how we should treat people. When faced with 21st century issues it’s good to read and research more widely. I’m putting lots of books in the churches where I hope folk will borrow them. Libraries, bookshops and Amazon are good sources. Living the Questions has been a good DVD-based discussion opportunity. Dream, Think, Be, Do (a livelier presentation of some of the same material) will be running in 2011.

“A springboard to get young adults talking about what Christianity is all about for this generation.” Put together with the aim of helping college groups and twenty to thirty-somethings build a 21st century faith, it is accessible for people of any age wanting to explore faith in an informal setting. Watch out for posters and dates in the new year.

Christians have such a wide range of opinions and more influence than always recognised. We need to keep actively reflecting on what and why we believe and how we can play our part in sharing the good news of the gospel. Liz Gibson

On the first weekend of October I was very fortunate to attend a residential conference for new and prospective Session Clerks held at Carberry in Musselburgh. As an Elder with less than two years’ experience and a Session Clerk of even shorter time I have never felt totally confident of what is expected of me. I hoped this conference would be something that could be of enormous benefit to me and hopefully, as a result, to the congregation as well. As the time drew nearer I began to feel apprehensive, not at all sure about the whole idea, but, in fact, I needn’t have worried.

Apart from the experience of the Edinburgh bypass at rush hour the whole weekend was thoroughly enjoyable, very friendly and hopefully beneficial to my understanding of the role of Session Clerk. Apart from various practical suggestions as to the clerical side of the post, what was very helpful was the sharing of common experiences of the clerks from all parts of the country with hugely differing sizes and composition of Kirk Sessions. It was stressed that the role of Session Clerk was more of a ‘people than paper’ position. As I understand it, I am the minister’s person in the congregation and the liaison between congregation and minister, although I am confident that our minister, Liz, is easily and willingly accessible to all the congregation. One suggestion I plan to use is to put on the church notice board a copy of the Kirk Session minutes so that what happens ‘behind the scenes’ is open to all. Ann McNicol

Members of Glenorchy & Innishael; Muckairn, Kilchrenan & Dalavich; and Connel & Dunbeg, had a meeting in Taynuilt on 5th October. Strathfillan are included but weren’t able to be there that night. We were there to meet Karen Francis, Twinning Development Officer for Church of Scotland World Mission. She gave us a brief but very helpful understanding of the basics.

Twinning: linking Church of Scotland congregations or presbyteries with churches across the world where there is a special, historical relationship.

Benefits of twinning: fosters understanding of different culture realities, identifying humanitarian and international concerns, helping congregations to connect with the community; strengthening understanding of gospel.

What does twinning look like? – experience and share concerns, challenges, ideas, resources, visits and information. There is funding to support visits. Our profile form, completed by the steering group, with input from the Kirk Sessions, gives our congregational details and motivation, ie. what we would hope to bring to the twinning relationship and what we would like to receive from it. Karen challenged us to think further along these lines and say what twinning meant to us – Pairing, Identical, Similar, Joining, Differences, Relationships, Sharing and Friendship were some of the answers. We thought about giving & receiving, & looked at what it means to give in a non-paternalistic way. This relationship needs to be an equal partnership and take the risk of engaging on mutually agreed terms. We talked about other risks eg. fear of failure and concerns about the initial meeting with our partner. So where do we go from here? We need to consider practical issues:

Leadership: who will be the key people for creating and continuing the link?

Communication: how will we ensure that the constituent congregations are kept informed? All the more difficult with several congregations at this end.

Links: what are the possible links with Christ Church – Ministers, Kirk Sessions, Guilds/SWRI, schools, other community groups? Karen will continue to support and advise us but we now have to take the initiative and think about what we want from this new friendship, and how we can make it happen. Janet Buchanan

8th—17th February 2012

This is a 10-day pilgrimage based in Jerusalem and Galilee led by Rev Robert Brookes from Taynuilt along with a fellow Minister and organised by the very reputable travel company, McCabe Pilgrimages. Visits will include Jerusalem, Bethlehem, Nazareth and the Sea of Galilee. There is ample free time to allow you to explore or relax. Travel is by scheduled flights via Edinburgh and Heathrow and the accommodation in both Jerusalem and beside the Sea of Galilee is in three and four star hotels and is close to the biblical sites you will be visiting. There will be a local guide to take care of local administration.

Cost per Person: Based on 2 people sharing a twin-bedded room with private facilities is £1,560 Included in this is full board, air conditioned coach travel, all entrance fees at scheduled locations, airport taxes and security charges.

Robert says: “Everyone who has ever been to the Holy Land has found it an enriching and uplifting experience. I would thoroughly commend it to all.”

For more information or to make a booking, please contact Robert Brookes at Muckairn Manse, Taynuilt, tel no. 01866 822204, or by email at eilanview_@_uwclub.net. The deposit is £100 per person

Race to Infinity

After putting in my postcode BT’s message read: “Sorry but your exchange is not eligible to win The Race to Infinity as it has fewer than 1000 premises. We still want you to get involved so please go to ‘VOTE NOW’ to express your interest. If 75% of your exchange registers, BT will engage with your community to see what we can do in your area.” As I write, the percentage of votes cast is 3.03% – 9 out of a total 297. Our faith may tell us that the race to infinity has a different agenda but good communication is a useful tool on the journey! Worth voting.

• Tammy Kershaw & Sean Rowan, St Conan’s Kirk, 9th September
• Kirsten Grant & Nicolas Klaissle Blessing, Glenorchy Kirk, 11th September
• Charlotte Mundell & Greg Bryce Blessing, Crianlarich Hotel 23rd October

Data protection and confidentiality are important – in the church we endeavour to keep the same high standards expected in other walks of life.  For various reasons related to these issues parish ministers can no longer visit hospital patients unless they already know the person is in a ward.  We can’t be shown a list and find the person who we know, or introduce ourselves to the one we don’t know.  I understand the reasoning but find it sad because I have met folk who have said they were very pleased that I came to see them. They would not have known to ask for a visit, or might not have felt comfortable making such a request. I was always willing to take no for an answer both when I was hospital chaplain and as parish minister.  Anyway, the point of writing this is to ask folk to let me know if anyone is in hospital. Not just church goers or professing Christians but anyone who lives in our parishes. If I get there & they don’t want a visit that’s ok – I’ll wish them all the best and go away. But part of my role is to offer pastoral care and a listening ear to everyone in the parish. That hasn’t changed but will need to be more deliberately organised. Your help with spreading the word would be appreciated. And the good news doesn’t change – God isn’t confined by any rules and regulations!   – Liz Gibson

All are welcome:

Each year we celebrate harvest and give thanks for food which we consume from around the world. Since sheep are a major part of the economy in this area it has been decided to make them the theme for this year’s services. Pictures, poems, wool and other contributions would all be welcome.

Some people like to just listen to the Bible readings on a Sunday morning. Others like to follow the reading. It’s also good to have Bibles available to read for those who drop into the church during the week, whether in Glenorchy open daily, or Bridge of Orchy open for the Post Office, or Crianlarich when the school is in. The New Revised Standard Version is an accurate modern translation which retains much of the beautiful language of earlier editions. If you would like to contribute to buying Bibles each hardback copy costs £12 (reduced from £17). Dedications can be placed on request.

Tuesday 26th October 7.30pm in Dalmally Church Hall

An innovative framework for creating sustainable ways of living. Presentation by Sally Wilkin from Kilmartin House. Sally will be doing a session at Dalmally Primary School in the afternoon. The evening session is open to all – it’s free but donations towards costs would be appreciated. Come along and get some inspiration & information.

Wednesday 20th October in Tyndrum Hall

What has mathematics ever done for us?

Jack Lambert BSc PhD FRSE FIMA (Emeritus Professor of Numerical Analysis, University of Dundee) will not present any mathematics as such but will demonstrate how mathematical methods and models help to solve real life problems.  Examples include the mystifying case of an aircraft ejection seat, improvements to the success rate of surgical bypass operations and the nasty matter of dealing with abandoned land mines.

The parishes of Glenorchy & Innishael, Strathfillan, Muckairn, Kilchrenan & Dalavich, and Connel & Dunbeg have been working together to establish a twinning with a parish in the Church of North India. From a choice of three Kohlapur seemed the most appropriate and they have now accepted us as well.  I had an email from Rev More of Kolhapur Parish sending his greetings & saying how excited his congregation were about the twinning.

Two representatives from Lothian Presbytery came to tell us about their experiences of twinning with a diocese of the Church of North India, and how this had developed over the past 10 years. Their enthusiasm for the project was infectious, and the response to their talk was very positive.

The next stage is for Karen Francis, the Twinning Development Officer from the Church of Scotland’s World Mission Council, to come to speak to us and lead us through the stages of forming and developing the relationship with our twinned parish. This meeting will take place on Tuesday 5th October, 7.30 at Muckairn Church, and it would be great if as many as possible could attend. If you would like more information about the twinning, or about the parish of Kolhapur, please contact me.  – Adrienne Swan

Not that we really needed an excuse to eat together but both parishes were pleased to gather for lunch, first in the Station Tearoom at Crianlarich and then a few weeks later in Dalmally Church Hall.  Gifts were presented to retiring Session Clerks – John MacPherson and Jean Steer.  We’re all glad that Mary Anderson & Ann McNicol agreed to take on the office. All four are pictured here.  The cameras were less in evidence at Jean’s do so the photos of her and Ann were taken on other occasions. We wish John well on his move to Aviemore & Jean well finding more time to relax.

Jan Sutch Pickard will be joining Liz to lead worship on the morning of Sunday October 3rd in St Conan’s, Glenorchy and Crianlarich and then giving more of a presentation in the evening in Dalmally Church Hall at 7.30. She is on the left of the photo with the team who spent three months living together in Yanoun. The Deputy Mayor was quoted as saying: ‘You do not have guns, but your pens and cameras are even more powerful.’  If you’d like to find out a little more before October try Jan’s blog: earthfasts.wordpress.com

The total annual cost of a parish minister is £39,100. This is not what the minister is paid! but includes national insurance & pension contributions and is based on a minister with 10 years’ service (the top increment for stipend). At the moment Glenorchy & Innishael pay £4,101 and Strathfillan pay £4,375 – a total of £8,476, 87% of which goes to Ministries. The rest goes to Mission & Renewal and Support & Services. These figures may be adjusted slightly but give some idea of how we are subsidised by wealthier parishes. Worth bearing in mind when there is talk of money “going to Edinburgh”.  A leaflet called Funding our Faith gives more detail and is available in all the churches.

1st & 3rd Tuesday of month 10-12 Dalmally Church Hall. More about getting together than about making money but they need to cover costs.

• A Quiz at Bridge of Orchy raised £237 for Strathfillan Parish.
• A Games Night in Dalmally raised £85 for the Homeless World Cup.
• Jackie Craig had his walking boots on again, this time for the RNLI. Walking from Inverness to John O’Groats he raised a magnificent £1614.40. Congratulations!

Tobyn Cairn McCorquodale Cruise; St Conan’s 14th August

Cathie Lambiel; Crianlarich Church 1st July

Brian Duncan; Glenorchy Kirk 19th July

Anna Khanna; Glenorchy Kirk 27th July

Karen Roger & Fraser MacLennan; St Conan’s 7th August

Marjon Klaver & Iain Fisher; St Conan’s 12th August

Sarah Mooring & Paul Drayton; St Conan’s 4th September

It has now been several months since a newsletter came out. There’s been a lot happening.  I already knew life was full of contrasts but our trip to India really drummed it in.  It would be easy to decide that it’s impossible to change much but I happened to pick up a book which included stories about the abolition of slavery and the end of children going up chimneys. Adults and children still live and work in terrible conditions all over the world but things can change if there is the will to make it happen.  We visited a couple of Mary’s Meals projects and it was so good to meet local people and see the difference slowly beginning. Before that I was at a world summit of house churches where there were many stories of people sharing their faith and encouraging others to believe in and work for the kingdom of God. Back home there’s plenty going on. Harvest & Christmas saw creativity in worship (see photos below) and now we’re looking through Lent towards Easter. Money has been raised to help Haiti.  We have a new website for the parishes. Many individuals continue to look after the churches, whether cleaning, painting, arranging flowers, fixing problems, opening & locking up, publicity, counting money, preparation on Sunday mornings, serving tea, and lots more.  For all you do, thanks. If you want to join in, or do more, please say – there’s always something!  A key message of the gospel is that trusting in God we can make a difference.
Liz Gibson

A lot of maintenance went on in Bridge of Orchy and Crianlarich over last summer and I would particularly like to thank the many volunteers who have helped. Jim Mailer spent a whole day on Crianlarich church roof and Craig Murray for replacing the outside lights at Crianlarich and helping track down leaks and blocked down pipes to say nothing of lots of brush cutting.   In Bridge of Orchy Kenny McLennan has always been on hand with practical help. Hopefully everyone has seen the fresh paint on the outside of Bridge of Orchy and the new church signs at both churches. This was only achieved with special donations and fund raising for which lots of thanks to all involved. In November we cleared the moss from the Crianlarich pathway, and with help from several children from the school planted our organic fruit trees. AliEnergy continue to help with ideas about how to provide background heating in the churches and Jim Ronald has advised us on insulation. These are longer term projects to get the damp out of the buildings and make them more comfortable! In the meantime there will be more painting and decorating, and I have not forgotten about the leaflet holders! All this support makes the maintenance man’s job so much easier so it is greatly appreciated.
John (Jayk) Kerr.

Introducing two people in new roles, & thanking two others as they hand over the reins:

• Mary Anderson is now Session Clerk for Strathfillan.
• John MacPherson gears himself up for a move to Aviemore but we’ll continue to have his company and energy for a wee while yet.
• Ann McNicol is now Session Clerk for Glenorchy & Innishael.
• Jean Steer looks forward to being at meetings without having to take notes, as well as having more time for other activities.

Tyndrum Village Hall
THURSDAY 11th March 2010
Opening and closing a can of worms
Vaughan Southgate BSc (Aberystwyth), PhD (Cambridge) will help us understand the parasitic worms that cause schistosomiasis (Bilharzia), a nasty tropical disease suffered by about 120 million people.  Prince William was successfully treated. How did he become infected?  Can we stop transmission? Why do we need to study freshwater snails?  Will drug-resistant worms appear? Why is water management so important?  What might be the impact of climate change?

New website. Products from books to ties and Stationery to CDs. When you buy on the website, register and select your congregation from the drop down menu at the bottom of the form. From now on, 20% of everything you spend will go automatically to your congregation.www.standrewpress.com

(Action of Churches Together in Scotland)

Holy Spirit of Freedom
as the poor long 
for abundance shared
and injustice ended, 
and the Church longs for unity;
Challenge us to see these two visions
as vital threads in a single tapestry;
Sharpen our wit and imagination
to weave the two together
in the footsteps of Jesus 
for the life of the world
to the glory of God!

Carolyn Smyth www.acts-scotland.org

Rev Paul Beautyman is the first Argyll Presbytery Youth Adviser.  He has chosen our parishes for one of his pilot projects which means he will be supporting us in what we do, and might do, with young people. An initial meeting was held recently with encouraging participation. Look out for more information or come up with your own ideas and have a word with Liz.

Ingliston, Edinburgh 24-27 June 2010

The Rural Churches’ Stand is looking for volunteers from the rural churches (from all denominations) especially those who enjoy engaging in conversation, meeting strangers and who would be happy to spend one day assisting with the running of the Stand. If you would like to be part of this exciting event please be in touch with Sheila Reeves, Church of Scotland  0131 225 5722 or email sreeves{@}cofscotland.org.uk

2011 or 2012
Photos are requested for possible inclusion in a professionally produced calendar.  We are looking for views of, or from, anywhere in the boundaries of our two parishes.  Possibly including people at work or play.  Whether you have one or two good digital snaps, or a whole portfolio to choose from, please let us have a look. Other churches in scenic areas have raised both profile and funds by such a venture but we need to check out all the details. Please speak to Malcolm Bruce at Dalmally Pharmacy, or to Liz, if you are interested.

Martin & Jane Goodwin, Dalmally, took this photo in Samburu, Kenya, commenting it was very peaceful with low property maintenance.

Debbie McKnight & Andrew McKnight at St Conan’s 5th September
Nita-Jean Milligan & Iain Ferguson at St Conan’s 12th September
Nicola Horrocks & David Hitchen at St Conan’s 3rd October
Sandie Russell & Richard Duffy at St Conan’s 10th October
Marina Macleod & Malcolm McLarty at Crianlarich Church 28th November
Brenda Hanham & Alan Clifford at Bridge of Orchy Church 22nd January

Donnie MacLeod Interment at Glenorchy Kirk 29th May
May MacMaikin at Crianlarich Church 1st July
Bobby Wilson at Glenorchy Kirk 12th September
Charlie Farquarson Memorial at St James Ardbrecknish 26th September
David Rae at Greenock Crematorium & Glenorchy Kirk 28th & 29th October
Ian Morrison (Heiker) at Glenorchy Kirk 4th November
Annie Cameron at Crianlarich Church 20th November